Pacers’ Mahinmi no stranger to injury
French big man now faces his toughest challenge in Raptors’ Valanciunas
A sweat-free Ian Mahinmi walked off the court Wednesday afternoon at Bankers Life Fieldhouse. However, a waiting crowd of reporters with questions about injuries and Toronto’s frontcourt dominance may have drawn a bead or two of sweat from the Indiana Pacers’ starting centre, who was held out of practice. Mahinmi was asked about his sprained lower back, which he sustained in Monday’s loss, and if he’d be able to go for Thursday’s Game 3 of the Pacers’ first-round series against the Raptors. The Pacers could use every big body available to them as Jonas Valanciunas is doing his best Bill Russell impersonation, averaging 17.5 points and 17 rebounds so far this series.
Mahinmi, who has produced the best season of his eight-year career with the Pacers, acknowledged that he does not expect to be close to full health again this season. If he plays Thursday — or any games thereafter — he will do it with a damaged body.
“It’s not the best, but it’s not my first time playing through stuff like that,” Mahinmi said of his lower back, which has nagged him the most this season. He later added: “It’s something that my body is accustomed to. I’ve dealt with it before, and it’s probably not the last time that something like that is going to happen to me.” Mahinmi, who is l i sted as questionable, did his best to downplay his injury, to dissuade the idea that he could miss Thursday’s game. But if Mahinmi’s back continues to sap his athleticism — he has missed all eight of his shot attempts in the series — his inability to score and defend could significantly damage the Pacers’ chances of upsetting the Raptors.
After the Pacers’ practice, Mahinmi shared how he will prepare for Thursday’s game. He said he would exchange text messages with someone in the training staff every two hours to explain how he is feeling when outside of the arena. He also planned on doing multiple stretches Wednesday night and Thursday afternoon to alleviate the pain and soreness in his back. Mahinmi was then asked if he would receive a cortisone shot to ensure he could play.
“I wish I could help you on that question,” he said. “No comment.”
If Mahinmi is able to play Thursday, it would not surprise his teammates after he came back from six different types of injuries in the regular season. After each one, Mahinmi continued to play on and he averaged 9.3 points and 7.1 rebounds, both career highs, in 71 games.